Upper Hopkins Land Management Group Newsletter

Welcome to the Spring 2017 edition of the UHLMG newsletter Spring 2017 Editor: Una Allender

Inside this issue: “Rewilding the Desert” - AGM and Dinner Meeting Identifying birds by call Thirty members and friends attended the recent Upper Hopkins Land Management Group Aphids, moths & IPM AGM and dinner at the Ararat Hotel Red Room. Jack Tucker was returned as chair with Birds in Country Andi Armytage Secretary and Celia Tucker Treasurer. Vice-chair is Stephen Reid and committee members are Elyjah McLeod, Kelly Gellie, Penny Hartwich, Don Rowe, Bruce GHCMA board McKay, Dominique Sparks, Jayne Drum, Peta Watson, Carole Mules and Craig Hinchliffe. appointments Woodland bird monitoring Guest speaker for the evening was wildlife ecologist Ben Holmes who works for Conserva- tion Volunteers Australia at the Little Desert Nature Lodge. Ben gave an excellent presen- Landcare News tation on ‘Rewilding the Desert’. Rewilding refers to restoring ecosystem function and proc- ess and is of great interest to ecologists and conservationists in light of the ongoing loss of Perennial Pastures Systems biodiversity. Since European settlement 130 Australian species have become extinct. Woorndoo grasslands Over 310 animals and 1,180 plants species are currently threatened. For example, bet- tongs once roamed widely but are now found only at 4 sites (3 in WA and 1 in SA). Mt Emu Creek WAP project Beyond Bolac CAG Rewilding can help conserve threatened plants, animals and ecosystems. Animals can be used to good effect to restore ecological balance. Rewilding can also create tourism op- Wimmera Biodiversity portunities. As an example, wolves reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park, have al- Seminar tered the behaviour of deer, leading to improved tree condition which in turn increased bird and beaver numbers. Habitat for water fauna was improved and more berries became SWIFFT videoconference available for bears. The introduction of a small number of wolves has had an immediate Climate Change Innovation and profound effect on the landscape. Spring photo board There is a need to demonstrate this can work in Australia. Little Desert Nature Lodge has a large fenced area and Ben plans to Rewild a suite of our most threatened fauna including: Water monitoring results  “Diggers” - Mallee Fowl, Bettong, Bilby,Western Barred Bandicoot  “Small predators” - Spotted Quoll, Western Diary Dates Quoll IPM Paddock Walk—Thurs Oct. 5  “Insectivores” – Numbat, Antechinus, Dunnart Tatyoon (details page 3) Woorndoo grasslands project Before re-introducing animal species a monitoring meeting—Sun Oct. 8 Woorndoo program to collect baseline data has been de- signed so anyone can participate, with more com- Woodland bird monitoring Sun plex monitoring and research to be done by scien- Oct. 22—Gum San Car Park 9am tists and students. A staged progam will see a SWIFFT video conference— trial introduction of Bettongs in 2018, more Thurs Oct. 26 (details page 7) “Diggers” added later in 2018 and “small preda- Climate Change Innovation tors” reintroduced in 2019. Wildlife interpretation meetings—Oct 9 Ballarat, Oct 18 and breeding facilities are being set up with rede- Horsham (details page 7) velopment of the lodge planned to make the pro- ject sustainable in the long term. “Ribbons of History” - Thursday Nov. 2nd 1.30pm. (details page 4) Jack Tucker (L) & Ben Holmes checking one of our new Reconyx cameras. (Photo Una Allender) Upper Hopkins LMG still has some 1:1 funding available for Gorse New website: www.uhlmg.com.au control work. Contact Una or www.facebook.com/UHLMG Celia if you are interested. Please help us to cut costs and reduce our impact on the environment.

Nominate to receive your next newsletter via email (with color photos) rather than on paper (black & white). Simply send an email with your name and a request to add your details to our distribution list. Address your email to: [email protected]

` The Upper Hopkins Land Management Group is grateful to the Glenelg Hopkins CMA and the Victorian Government DELWP & DEDJTR for their support of group activities and the production of this newsletter.

Identifying Birds by Call

By David Nichols, Glenelg Hopkins CMA

Many people become interested in bird watching because of the sheer beauty and variety of the birds in our region. For a small proportion, the next step they take along the ‘twitcher’ path, is to start recording their bird sightings from time to time, and from place to place. At this point, many bird watchers find it useful to start learning some of the calls of the birds they are watching.

Learning bird calls is the most useful method of identifying birds for several reasons, mainly because you can often hear a lot more birds then you can see. This is especially the case for bush land settings where birds are often obscured by the surrounding vegetation. You can often only see in one direc- tion until the first blockage of line of sight. It can also be diffi- cult to see birds on cloudy and windy days. However you can always hear the birds that are calling in the bush despite which way you are looking and blockages to your line of sight.

Learning bird calls can seem daunting at first, however there are a few strategies to help the process. Firstly, it is easier to try and learn a handful of calls at first rather than a lot. Once you have mastered a few, you can move onto others. Whether the birds are common or rare, some calls are a lot easier to learn than others. Spent your time trying to learn some of the calls of more common birds that are more distinctive or easier to pick. Some of the more common but harder calls (eg Su- perb Fairywren and New Holland Honeyeater) will come to you over time.

The trick when trying to learn a call is to find a ‘connection’ to the call, find something that resonates with you either the rhythm, pitch, sound or word. Some calls you can associate with normal words, for example the Spotted Pardalote – “miss piggy, miss piggy”, White-plumed honeyeater – chick-a wee, chick-a-wee” or the White-eared Honeyeater – “pretty boy, pretty boy”. If you can find some connection it will be easier to remember. With this in mind, and with spring upon us, there are a number of birds that will be calling in our farmland and bush land areas in the coming months and have a distinctive call. These I be- lieve are a good place to start for learning calls, and include the following birds:  Spotted and Striated Pardalotes  Horsefield’s and Shining Bronze Cuckoos From top: Musk Duck with a yummy lunch; Silver Eye; Spotted  White-eared and White-plumed Honeyeaters Pardalote. (Photos: Hannah Nichols)  Rufous and Golden Whistlers  White-throated Treecreeper Below: Brolga (Photo: Dave Nichols)  Restless Flycatcher

You can practice learning some of these calls by referring to freely available apps and online sites. Good bird apps to pur- chase are the following;  Guide to Birds of Australia – Michael Morcombe and David Stewart  Birds of Australia – Pizzey and Knight The ‘website www.xenocanto.org has thousands of recordings to listen to free of charge. Perhaps the easiest and cheapest way to get started is to go to the ‘Learning Your First 20 Birds’ file in the Woodland Birds area of the Glenelg Hopkins CMA website. Otherwise you can obtain a copy of this file from Una Allender, Celia Tucker or Dave Nichols.

2 The Upper Hopkins Land Management Group’s Woodland Bird Monitoring program is supported by the Glenelg Hopkins CMA through funding from the Australian Government’s Na- tional Landcare Programme. Aphids, Moths and IPM Birds in Country

By Jayne Drum & Una Allender, UHLMG By David Nichols, Glenelg Hopkins CMA Glenelg Hopkins CMA have released a new free bird app Russian Wheat Aphid and Diamond Back Moth will be the which features both calls and indigenous knowledge. topics covered in a Paddock Talk on Thursday 5th October with Paul Horne & Jessica Page from IPM Technologies. Part-parti Mirring-yi (Birds in Country) is a new app featuring 10.30am to 12pm Aboriginal bird knowledge of the languages/dialects of South West Victoria. Although these languages are no longer spo- Anyone interested attending this session and learning more ken, language revival is underway through education activities about Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is very welcome. in schools and communities in the region, delivered by the The paddock for the talk is located on the intersection of the local Laka Gunditj Language Program— Rossbridge–Streatham Road and Rockies Hill Road, Tatyoon. http://www.vaclang.org.au/projects/gunditjmara.html. This app has been created as a tool for learning about lan- Paul and Jessica will lead a discussion on identification, guage, culture and the natural environment. It is clear that monitoring and control strategies for Russian Wheat Aphid in woodland birds were used by Aboriginal people of the region cereal crops and Diamond Back Moth in canola. People for food, as well as their feathers being used for ornamenta- attending will also hear about the latest results from the Upper tion and decoration. Woodland birds feature in local astron- Hopkins Land Management Group’s Heliothis trap sites, and omy and mythology, and their calls, presence or behaviours have an opportunity to ask questions about anything IPM. indicated weather conditions, good or bad news and embod- ied cultural and spiritual power. All of the language groups in Heliothis traps have been set up in pairs to monitor both the region have woodland birds as significant totems, or moie- armigera and punctigera species. The traps are located at ties. Many Aboriginal people in the region continue to associ- Willaura, Willaura North, Yalla-Y-Poora, Ballyrogan, Tatyoon ate meteorological events, death, danger, shape-shifting and and Wickliffe (punctigera only) and will be monitored weekly unexplained phenomena with birds and their behaviour. during Spring. Moth counts from each of these sites should start to flow through in the next fortnight. A big thankyou to In addition to the app, the Glenelg Hopkins Woodland Bird people who have put their hands up to be monitors of the Booklet has been updated to include Aboriginal bird knowl- Heliothis traps for this Spring. edge from a range of language groups across the region, in- Following the positive outcomes of last year's “Bug Hotline” for cluding Jardwadjali, Djab Wurrung, Bundanditj, Wadawurrung agronomists, the Upper Hopkins Land Management Group and the South West Aboriginal languages. (UHLMG) continues to provide local agronomists with free access to the 'Hotline' for 2017. Quotes from some of the The app can be downloaded here: agronomists making use of the Bug Hotline in 2016:  "Being able to contact entomologists that specialise in IPM For iphones: https://itunes.apple.com/cn/app/part-parti-mirring- and have a strong understanding of pest behaviour, life yi/id1218642005?l=en&mt=8 cycles, etc has given me more confidence to make control decisions, particularly when to not use an insecticide. For Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details? Having contact with the entomologists has taken a lot of id=org.jila.birds.sw.vic&hl=en indecision out of pest management recommendations." The booklet can be downloaded from the CMA website  “The hotline has been fantastic this year, the point of http://www.ghcma.vic.gov.au/media/uploads/ contact and advice from Paul & Angelica has been Woodland_Bird_Booklet.pdf extremely helpful. Great reference points and very helpful for decision making.” or copies can be obtained through Dave Nichols at GHCMA Tel: 5571 2526 or Email: [email protected] Bug News, compiled by IPM Technologies will be available to Landcare members. Bug News provides timely information on potential insect problems, and suggestions for dealing with these using IPM methods. For example the September Spring Woodland Bird Monitoring edition has information on both both Russian wheat aphid and Green peach aphid. Keep Sunday October 22nd free for an excellent morning’s bird watching. Dave Nichols, Glenelg Hopkins CMA, and a If anyone has anything of IPM interest to contribute to the guest “birdo” will lead the Spring Woodland Bird Monitoring group please feel free to contact Jayne on 0429 416 592. session in the Ararat and Maroona area.

The IPM project is supported by the Glenelg Hopkins CMA Anyone interested in Woodland Birds is very welcome to join and the Upper Hopkins Land Management Group through the group. We will meet at the Gum San carpark in Ararat at funding from the Australian Government's Regional Landcare 9am to car-pool for travel to the three sites that have been Facilitator Project. regularly monitored. Starting in the natural bush of the Ararat Hills we will then move to a remnant bush block on Steve Shannon’s Burumbeep Road farm, with the final stop at Peter and Christine Forster’s revegetated Bullock Hills. Results Glenelg Hopkins CMA—board appointments from this monitoring are added to the Birdlife Australia data- base. The Minister for Water has announced the new appointments to the Glenelg Hopkins Catchment Management Authority board to Bring binoculars and cameras. Wear appropriate clothing be effective from 1 October 2017. The board consisting of Chair, and footwear. Morning tea and a BBQ lunch will be provided. Mr Antony Ford, Deputy Chair, Debbie Shea and members Dr Please BYO camp chair and a thermos of hot water. John Sherwood, Mr Damien Bell, Dr Michelle Casanova, Ms 3 Georgina Gubbins will be joined by new directors Ms Christine To register for the session or for more information call Dave Giles, Mrs Kate Calvert & Mr Phil Saunders. Nichols (0407 321 747) or Una Allender (0419 891 920) .

Landcare news

Ararat Landcare Group honours a pioneer New Website for Upper Hopkins Land Management Group Members of Ararat Landcare Group recently celebrated the A big THANK YOU to Dom Sparkes for her work setting up completion of their latest project, enhancing the McNeill Street our website. The address is www.uhlmg.com.au. Reserve with a connecting pathway, native shrubs, timber Thank you also to Celia Tucker for keeping our Facebook seating and some solid natural timber play equipment. Landcare members and local residents enjoyed a gourmet page regularly updated with group news and other items of BBQ lunch prepared by Ararat Rotarians. interest. We also now have an Instagram page. Members’ Survey With the help of an Ararat Rural City community grant, the Reserve is now enjoyed by many locals and is a perfect spot The UHLMG Members’ Survey will close mid October so if you for parents and grandparents to relax with their children. are a member and have yet to complete a survey please Margaret Burbidge has been tireless in her work for this either fill in and return by post the hard copy ( this was mailed project and has been ably assisted by other Landcare in August only to those for whom we have no email address) or complete the Survey Monkey version online at https:// members and the Ararat Woodies. www.surveymonkey.com/r/9WSLZFM. It only takes a few minutes and will provide valuable information to guide the McNeill Street and the McNeill Street Reserve were named UHLMG committee. after Grace McNeill, who in 1911 was a trail blazer as the first female Town Clerk of Ararat Council. A plaque dedicated to Bridge works at Rossbridge Miss McNeill was unveiled at the BBQ by Ararat Landcare President Stephen Hughan. (Photos on page 8) On behalf of Upper Hopkins LMG Una has been carrying out weekly water monitoring at Rossbridge for the bridge Bioenergy Conference in Ararat—September 11th replacement contractors. The old bridges have now been demolished and work will get underway to replace these with The Victorian Bioenergy Network’s 2017 Conference was one wider, higher bridge. The contractors, Downer, have well attended with a program of interesting presentations on installed large culverts under a newly constructed gravel Day 1 with a workshop or a field tour on Day 2. Many as- crossing which allows access for the works. They have also pects were covered including biomass as a renewable en- installed two silt catchers just downstream from the work site. ergy source; gasification plants and biochar production sys- These barriers have a mesh net about 1 meter deep to catch tems on both large and small scale; converting waste to en- sediment. So far there have been no issues with water quality ergy; farming systems producing their own energy with addi- downstream of the work site. According to senior project tional saleable by-products. Opportunities for investment by engineer, Walid Ahmadzai, the work is on track to be communities in renewable energy were addressed by speak- completed by January. ers from both Embark and ARENA.

A highlight was the after-dinner presentation by John Sander- son of Earth Systems who spoke on production of Biochar, and also most entertainingly his “other:” career in pyrotech- nics and film making.

More details can be found at https://bioenergyvictoria.net.au/

Funding for projects. Our group has been successful in obtaining State government funding for a Biodiversity On-ground Action project for revegetation on Jane and Sam King’s property. We are waiting to hear if our application for the Victorian Landcare Grant 2017_18 has been successful. Last year’s VLCG grant will fund several revegetation projects for Tom & Sarah Guthrie, Pat & Sarah Millear, Wally & Elizabeth McColl and Tim & Sally Philip. “Ribbons of History” is the title for a gathering arranged by PLAN at 60L Leicester Street, Carlton (the “Green Building”) Protection and enhancement of a farm wetland on Thursday November 2nd at 1.30pm. Guest speakers are Working together, and with assistance from Glenelg Hopkins Dr Greg Moore, Univ of Melbourne and Dr Rodney van der CMA, neighbours Tim and Sally Philip and Jayne and Craig Ree, author of “Handbook of Road Ecology”. RSVP to plan- Drum have implemented a fencing and tree planting project [email protected] or Louise Costa-Pelle 0437 around the perimeter of a 20 acre swamp in the Tatyoon/ 153 203 Rossbridge area. This project, which is now completed, was funded through the 2015/16 Victorian Landcare Grants. Some Public Land Advocacy Network for the Environment more tubestock planting may be required to replace any (PLAN) is a new organisation of peak environmental groups losses. and campaigners working to protect the environment threat- ened by roadworks and other impacts on public land. Road- sides are important for many threatened fauna dependent on mature trees as part of their ecology including those depend- ant on hollows. Vegetated roadsides also provide critical habitat links in the landscape.

4 The apparent escalating destruction of this valuable resource has spurred PLAN into action and they are looking for people and organisations to work with them to halt the decline of these important remnants.

PPS - Kangaroo Island Study Tour Woorndoo grasslands

By Rob Shea, Coordinator PPS By David Franklin, Grassland Flora

The Perennial Pasture Systems (PPS) farmer group recently The Woorndoo Land Protection Group (WLPG) has been completed their 9th Annual Study Tour which took twenty successful with their application for funding through the seven members for a four day visit to leading farms on Community and Volunteer Action Grants project. This funding Kangaroo Island, South Australia. will facilitate native grassland revegetation to extend the previous 2013 successful seeding project at the Woorndoo- PPS conducted its first study tour in 2009 and they have Nerrin Road site. The photo below was taken on this site on ranged from one day visits to leading enterprises in Victoria to December 2014. multi day interstate visits to S.A. and Tasmania as well as the 2015 tour to New Zealand. PPS President Wayne Burton The project will also commented “the annual study tour is an important part of the involve detailed PPS calendar; it a great learning experience as well as adding experimental plantings to the social fabric of the group”. over a 2 year period.

PPS was fortunate to obtain great assistance from locals on A meeting of the WLPG Kangaroo Island (KI), as well as in other areas of S.A. in will be held at Woorndoo planning the study tour. Wayne Burton continued “it was great Recreation Reserve on to have such a large group go to KI, we all learnt a lot and will Sun 8th Oct at 4.30 pm to be producing a full report for the rest of our members”. People explain the details of this car pooled to Cape Jervis on Sunday September 27th to board innovative and exciting the large ferry which links KI to the mainland. project. All those interested in native The farm tours commenced early the next morning with the grasslands and the first farm visit near Penneshaw. KI was fairly dry in early challenges for their winter but the pastures and stock were starting to show the survival are encouraged to benefits of catch up rain and warmer temperatures. attend

Three more farms were visited on the Monday which gave the The 9th Annual PPS Conference was held in Ararat on group a good insight to the variation in soil type and the large September 20th with the theme “Tactics for Fantastic”. annual rainfall differences on the island. At one stage a twenty A full report will appear in the next newsletter minute drive between farms went from an 800mm annual rainfall down to 550mm. The KI tour finished with a late evening visit to the Flinders The overnight stay was in Pardana, in the centre of KI, where Chase National Park and the iconic Remarkable Rocks and a social evening was enjoyed along with an informative nearby seal colony. The evening was again in Pardana and presentation on the history of sheep farming on KI by local vet was spent with the company of several of the host farmers Greg Johnsonn. who joined the group for dinner.

The first farm the next day showed some real innovation Although the tour was funded by the tour participants; PPS did where an irrigated seed potato enterprise had been added to receive support from the Glenelg Hopkins Catchment the lamb operation. The other properties gave an insight into Management Authority through the Federal Government the sheep, cattle and pasture production systems on KI, with National Landcare Programme which helped with facilitation the productive use of kikuyu of particular interest. costs. PPS was also assisted by Allflex who provided large cattle name tags which aided the locals in getting to know the PPS members also learnt of the difficulties of farming on an group and ensured the return of any stray members. island, with high freight costs and transport delays due to rough seas adding to the complexities. These issues are being PPS President, Wayne Burton summed up the study tour by dealt with by a younger generation of farmers with the average saying “it was a great experience for us and we appreciated age of producers on KI much lower than the Australian the hospitality of our hosts who allowed us to visit farms at the average. Two of these are also Nuffield Scholars, a highest end of the scale. PPS will take many lessons from scholarship program which promotes excellence in agriculture them as well as being inspired by their dedication and pride in and their presentations to PPS members were well received. agriculture; we are already planning for next year”.

5

Mt Emu Creek project update Beyond Bolac Catchment Action Group

By Tania Parker, GHCMA By Anthony Casanova, Interim Facilitator

The Mt Emu Creek Waterway Action Plan (WAP) project is The water level of Lake Bolac is just below the top of the now entering the second and final year of project funding. overflow that feeds into Salt Creek. At the southern edge of the lake there is a small ridge of sand created by wave action, The first year (2016-17) target area included Trawalla Creek and on windy days the higher waves make it across and into and Mt Emu Creek between Trawalla and Baillie Creek. The the last few metres of grassy damp ground before the current target area (2017-18) is Mt Emu Creek from Skipton to concrete levee. See photo below (A. Casanova) Darlington. Projects are able to be developed from both of these areas for on-ground works in 2018 and submitted for project funding at the CMA.

Letters with an expression of interest (EoI) form were sent to landholders with frontage to Mt Emu Creek in the new target area from Skipton to Darlington in late August, with site inspections and projects to be developed over the coming months. The Expression of Interest timeframe closed on 29 September 2017.

Anyone with land adjacent to Mt Emu Creek in either of these target areas can contact Tania Parker at Glenelg Hopkins CMA on 5571 2526 for more information.

Water continues to flow down the Fiery Creek and into the lake. The most recently available flow rates at Streatham were 10 ML per day in early August, which was prior to the recent rain events. Some of the Fiery Creek water between Streatham and Lake Bolac will be soaking out into associated wetlands on the floodplain beside the creek, and adding to the productivity of these natural systems.

The water that comes down the Fiery has multiple benefits as a resource for people and also for remnant biodiversity. A flush of fresh water reduces the salinity levels in the waterway, which is important for many species, including for vegetation, birds, fish and other animals. The streamside vegetation is looking more healthy at the moment than it has for years. The shoreline around Lake Bolac is also in good condition, with planted trees adding to natural regrowth that has come up since the dry years. The amenity value of this water is Jim Gaylard (above) manages a 14 km dual frontage on Mt important to many people; for tourists, fishers, and it also adds Emu Creek for Trawalla Estate and is looking forward to the to the sense of wellbeing of the people who live here. These opportunities this project will provide. Photo: GHCMA multiple benefits give points of overlapping interests for Beyond Bolac to engage with other groups.

It is worth acknowledging that the current state of this water system has benefited from the landcare works of many people over the last few decades. The amount and quality of water that comes down the Fiery is the net result of a whole suite of inter-connected factors across the catchment. For example, cropping versus grazing affects infiltration and runoff rates. Revegetation, fencing and erosion control works that have been done along the small tributaries and creek lines have the ongoing benefit of creating a sponge effect that evens out the spikes and dips in streamflow rates.

And for the future? In Europe thee is a high value placed on the boggy margins adjacent to waterways for their ability to absorb nutrients and to denature agricultural chemicals before they reach the streams and pools. This could be worth investigating for potential applicability to our environment, and to develop some management recommendations for these zones. Our best wishes to Upper Hopkins LMG email : [email protected] members Penny and Russell Hartwich on web : beyondbolac.org the birth of their daughter Sophie. 6 0409 506 533

Wimmera Biodiversity Seminar Climate Change Innovation

By Deidre Andrews, Waste & Sustainability Officer, Ararat A series of Climate Change Innovation Marketplace events Rural City Council arranged by DEWLP are being held in Melbourne and major regional centres across Victoria in September and October Thursday 7th September saw the 20th Wimmera Biodiversity 2017 to identify and discuss regional climate change priori- Seminar at the recently renovated Horsham Town Hall. The ties. Climate Change Innovation Marketplace events are event was attended by NRM agency staff, Council employees, designed to actively promote ideas and solutions to the chal- garden enthusiasts, Landcare members, passionate lenges of climate change. conservations and the general public.

People from community groups, local businesses, universi- Mc'd by the ABC's Gardening Australia host Costa Georgiadis; not only an exceptional garden guru but a word smith to boot. ties and TAFEs, research institutions, local and non- Costa's wit, intelligence and ability to follow up each speaker government organisations are encouraged to attend these with anecdotes and word compilations made for an exciting events being held as part of the Climate Change entertaining and informative event. Innovation grants program.

Matt Ruchel, Executive Director, Victorian National Parks The Climate Change Innovation grants program provides Association, spoke first on the advocacy of the organisation, $3.8 million in competitive grants funding for innovative pro- from the Victorian Forests Timber Utilisation Plan, April 2017 jects to address the climate change challenges facing Victo- to the spread of the invasive species; deer across the state. ria communities. Successful projects will receive $50,000- David Parkes topic was What do weather forecasting and $300,000 in funding. Preference will be given to partnership biodiversity conservation have in common? Understanding projects. One of the aims of the Marketplace events is to as- how the natural environment varies in space and time, with sist interested organisations in developing partnerships to approaches relevant to weather forecasting and biodiversity. apply for Climate Change Innovation grants.

The very interesting Dr Mardie Townsend with her topic, Upcoming meetings are on 9 October at Oscar's Hotel and Getting back to nature for a positive future followed. Ecological Cafe, 18 Doveton Street South, Ballarat, and 18 October in sustainability is crucial to human health and wellbeing, with research from around the world indicating that loss of Horsham (venue TBC) biodiversity has implications from many health-related issues. For more information about the Climate Change Innovation Nature foods: opportunities to farm with biodiversity featured grants program or Marketplace events, please contact the Amanda Garner, Chair, Australian Native Foods and Virtual Centre for Climate Change Innovation at Botanicals. A chef and farmer, Amanda advocates planting [email protected] or visit local native species for food production and biodiversity. www.climatechange.vic.gov.au

The effervescent, Rob Youl, Chair, Australian Landcare International, spoke of the spread of landcare to many countries and his work in the Wimmera and urban Landcare. Passionate, Corey Watts, Victorian Co- Bernie Dunn, GWMWater and Greg Fletcher, Wimmera CMA, ordinator, Farmers for spoke on the Wimmera Mallee Pipeline. The replacement of Climate Action, in 17,500km of open earthen channels with 9,000km of pipeline action at the Wim- to save over 100,000ML of water each year has provided mera Biodiversity sustainable supply for 35,000 urban and 2,500 rural Seminar. customers across 10% of Victoria. It has also enabled the creation of 51 wetlands, which, even though small, have proven to be hotspots of biodiversity. The organisation is a new and growing, grassroots organisa- The final speaker was Belinda Cant, Using LiDAR technology tion dedicated to sup- to detect Malleefowl. Her talk focussed on the use of LiDAR porting farmers in data to investigate Malleefowl distribution within areas of the rural communities in Little Desert National Park and the species response to fire. dealing with climate change risks and The evening session culminated with the Wotjobaluk Dance opportunities – hu- Group and local song man and storyteller, Neil Murray man health and agri- entertaining participants with stories of Country. culture.

This was, yet again, a fantastic event for our region, ably led Photo: D Andrews by the exceptional committee, who year after year, continue to attract top quality speakers to a great day out in biodiversity.

SWIFFT VIDEOCONFERENCES: Notes from previous Video Conferences are on the SWIFFT website and you can now follow SWIFFT on Twitter. Check out the SWIFFT website for more details. http://www.swifft.net.au/ 7 The next Video Conference is on Thursday 26 October 2017 - Indigenous knowledge of ecology Remember that registration at least two days prior to any videoconference is essential if you wish to attend at the Ararat office. Contact Felicity Christian on 5355 0531. Spring photo board

Clockwise from above: McNeill Reserve Celebration and BBQ (P4)—Ararat LCG chair Stephen Hughan unveiling the Grace McNeill plaque; Ararat LCG members Aileen Ban- field (L) and Margaret Burbidge (Photos: U. Allender).

Tawny Frogmouth (D. Nichols);

Canola near Willaura; Wedgetail Eagle nest at “Eastern Slopes” (S. Roper);

Fiery Creek at Streatham (A. Casanova)

8 Water monitoring - meanderings and reflections

Collecting the quarterly water samples was a big job this time with almost every river and creek actively flowing. Birds were in abundance particularly large numbers of ducks and other waterbirds. There was generally less rubbish in the waterways but it was disap- pointing to find four tyres dumped in the Hopkins River at Warrak Road. Native vegetation is looking good with Hedge Wattle in full bloom and the beautiful perfume of Tree Violets in flower. A detour to check out the Yalla-Y-Poora Grassland Reserve was rewarded with sightings of numerous wildflowers. This small reserve is well worth a visit at this time of the year as is Hadland Street Reserve on Cemetery Creek in Ararat.

Common Early Nancy Wurmbea dioica at Yalla-Y-Poora Grassland Reserve Photo: Steve Roper

Water testing results : Upper Hopkins River, Upper Fiery Creek and Upper Mt Emu Creek catchment areas EC levels for livestock water supplies. Value given in brackets for each type of livestock is the EC level at which production decline begins: Beef cattle (6,200 EC μS/cm), lactating ewes and weaners (6,000 EC μS/cm), dry sheep (9,300 EC μS/cm)), horses (6,200 EC μS/cm), Pigs (3,100 EC μS/cm), poultry 3,100 EC μS/cm).

Stream Road where site accessed EC (µS/cm) EC (µS/cm) highest lowest average Sept 2017 June 2017 Good Morning Bill Creek Buninjon West Road 1418 11190 39000 300 11672

Hopkins River Bridge on Labrador Road 3290 5610 11200 370 6181

Hopkins River Robertsons Bridge (Langi Logan Rd) 2430 4100 13000 950 4864

Hopkins River Tatyoon Road (sth Kangaroo Pt Rd) 2670 6510 13800 780 4701

Hopkins River Burrumbeep Boundary Road 2330 7400 11700 330 5398

Hopkins River Jacksons Creek Road 3180 8200 12100 340 6277

Hopkins River Warrak Road (Hopkins River Road) 4320 9000 23280 490 9160 Hopkins River Wickliffe– Glenelg Highway 4670 11250 19000 1590 11037 Hopkins River Back Bolac Road 4830 10550 29600 1620 12307 Hopkins River Delacombe Way (Edgarley Bridge) 4880 9290 17400 1790 10043 Hopkins River Rossbridge (bridge) 4480 7900 13700 820 8390 Challicum Creek Porters Bridge Road 945 12440 26680 145 11675 Fiery Creek Porters Bridge Road 1165 3010 11930 550 5581 Fiery Creek Mt William Rd (east Travellers Rest Rd) 1046 2870 5950 500 2273 Fiery Creek Gordons Bridge Road 1329 3220 17560 530 5293 Fiery Creek Runway Swamp Road 2280 7130 14520 860 5108 Fiery Creek Streatham Reserve 2190 9200 11600 770 4344 Fiery Creek McCrows Rd/Nerrin Nerrin Estate Rd 2550 8500 13770 780 7717 Fiery Creek Lake Bolac 3100 4200 22280 850 8285 Lake Bolac Fishermens Pontoon 3820 4910 53000 1410 11477 Trawalla Creek Back Waterloo Rd, bridge 1767 2100 15300 400 2637 Mt Emu Creek Trawalla Bridge 1524 2380 6400 440 1820

Mt Emu Creek Lake Goldsmith Road 2360 5900 6400 370 3147

Mt Emu Creek Streatham-Carngham Road 2100 Dry at bridge 12200 130 2707 Mt Emu Creek Mt Emu Settlement Road Bridge 2020 4440 11490 390 5250 Mt Emu Creek Skipton pedestrian bridge 2030 4020 7900 440 4572

9 Stream Road where site accessed EC (µS/cm) EC (µS/cm) Sept 2017 June 2017 highest lowest average

Lake Buninjon Maroona - Glenthompson Road 4110 5850 104000 880 17313

Green Hill Lake Western Highway entrance 935 947 28800 340 6940

Hopkins River Old Geelong Road 4240 10760 16300 1000 8619

Hopkins River Dobie Road 4010 dry 15900 160 5944

Captains Creek Tatyoon North Road 667 787 3500 100 506

Hopkins River Bald Hill Road ford 5000 10500 31800 3400 11497

Hopkins River Helendoite Road 3450 4680 10800 390 5870

Jacksons Creek Coopers Road 2690 No sample 15900 770 8879

Tatyoon drainage Rockies Hill Road 7410 13800 26200 360 15448 Denicull Creek Denicull Creek Road– south end No sample dry 10900 890 7124

Three Mile Creek Warrayatkin Road 7700 dry 22400 600 7738

Three Mile Creek Warrak Road 3140 903 13600 390 2549

Cemetery Creek Warrak Road 850 301 9100 130 887 Clem Sturmfels DEDJTR Ararat - 5355 0535 Soil conservation, incentives and whole farm planning

Una Allender - 0419 891 920 Facilitator - Upper Hopkins Land Management Group, Ararat Landcare [email protected] Group

Glenelg Hopkins CMA— 5571 2526 Waterways, Wetlands, Works on Waterways Permits Jack Tucker— 0427 547 636 or 5354 6277 Chair, Upper Hopkins Land Management Group Andrea Armytage— 0402 054 378 Secretary, Upper Hopkins Land Management Group Celia Tucker— 0409 138 581 or 5354 6277 Treasurer, Upper Hopkins Land Management Group Deidre Andrews Ararat Rural City— 5355 0233 Ararat Rural City Council Waste and Sustainability Coordinator Debbie Shea— 5352 1357 Glenelg Hopkins CMA Board

Adam Merrick — 0458 965 333 Trust for Nature - Conservation agreements, grants, biodiversity techni- cal advice Anthony Casanova — 0409 506 533 Interim Facilitator—Beyond Bolac Catchment Action Group (BBCAG) [email protected]

Disclaimer: This publication may be of assistance to you but the Upper Hopkins Land Management Group does not guarantee that the publication is without flaw of any kind or is wholly appropriate for your particular purposes and therefore disclaims all liability for any error, loss or other consequence which may arise from you relying on any information in this publication.

Creeping Bossiaea Bossiaea prostrata Yalla-Y-Poora Grassland Reserve Photo: Steve Roper